Hallo!,
Ich bin sehr krank :(
Being sick in Berlin is so much...weirder? Then in the US. Over here you can´t just go into Rossman's and pick up some medicine. You have to go through an Apotheke, WITH a doctor's note. I hade to miss some class and just try to sleep it off. This, vitamins, and tea seem to be the go to fix for everything here. I am honestly suprised I didn't catch this earlier. Everyone in my German class was sick. My German teacher had to take a week off because of it.
On another note some ''Christmas Markets'' are opening up. There is one in Potsdamer Platz although...it's not really a Christmas Market. Just a few shops with cheap food. They are setting up the one in Alexanderplatz and Charlottenburg. I really want to go down south next month to see more of the traditional ones. Anything in Alexanderplatz tends to be more toursity.
Oh!
On Sunday I went with Lizzy to the Ballonaktion, for the 25th anniversary of the fall of the wall. We were in Brandenburger Tor, but it was to croweded. So we walked to Potsdamer Platz and had the perfect spot! We were right under a ballon. I took a small video and lots of pics which I will have to put up. It was amazing! They released the ballons one by one, and there was a light Show at the Brandenburger Tor. This was such an event that the DB STOPPED their strike early!! This is a big deal for DB. They love to strike. (That's fine with me, as long as BVG never strikes...You can do without Sbahns, you Need Ubahns and busses though.)Then of course after we went to Kreuzberg(The BEST place in all of Berlin) for Döner. It's probably bad the amount of Döner we consume, but it's sooo tasty. The one we always go to has the nicest people, who put up with our very bad German.
I also got my classes for next Semester. I am taking The Human Condition in the Totalitarian Experience´, and The History of Modern European Diplomacy. I also have to choose whether to go to Paris or London......
Now I am off to Alexanderplatz to get my Computer back.
Tschüss!
(PS. Saturn. Sticking a paperclip into my Laptop is NOT going to fix it or tell you what is wrong with it. Nice try.)
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Update
Hallo!
Since I havn´t been on in a while, I thought I would give some updates.
1- My new computer is unfixable. Samsung cancelled the warranty on it, since they said there is nothing they can do. I could pay about 312 euro, and they would try- no guarantees though.
2- I now have to get ANOTHER new Laptop. This time I will try Conrads in Kreuzburg. I am getting really annoyed with Saturn. (The one in Alexanderplatz).
3- Volksbank ATM ripped me off twice, so I am also trying to take care of that.
Other than that things have been pretty good here. Berlin has been awesome so far. I just hope that I can get these things taken care of.
Tschüss!
Since I havn´t been on in a while, I thought I would give some updates.
1- My new computer is unfixable. Samsung cancelled the warranty on it, since they said there is nothing they can do. I could pay about 312 euro, and they would try- no guarantees though.
2- I now have to get ANOTHER new Laptop. This time I will try Conrads in Kreuzburg. I am getting really annoyed with Saturn. (The one in Alexanderplatz).
3- Volksbank ATM ripped me off twice, so I am also trying to take care of that.
Other than that things have been pretty good here. Berlin has been awesome so far. I just hope that I can get these things taken care of.
Tschüss!
Poland!
I got back from Poland a while ago, however Mids were this week so I have been very busy.
In Poland we went to Poznan and Warsaw. Poznan was smaller, but so beautiful and packed full of spaghetti bars. (Plus we stayed at the Ibis!) We did a lot of tours around churches, since Poznan was the birthplace of Polish history and Catholicism. In the surrounding areas of Poznan we visited quite a few open air museums. We had our afternoons and nights free so those were spent wandering the city centers. We were also lucky enough to be there on a Saturday at noon. Any day at noon in Poznan they do the running of the goats. However, on SATURDAYS they also have the lancers out. The lancers kind of look like the Polish Mounties. On the way to leave Poznan, we got really lost. We also were supposed to get there by ourselves, so this did not help. Luckily a nice Polish man came over and helped us. Then my suitcase broke, so another nice Polish guy helped me carry it up the stairs.
In Warsaw we stayed at the HIT Hotel. It was nice, but the ladies at the front desk were rude! In Warsaw we did a lot of tours. Then we went to Treblinka. It was pretty quiet, and had a different feel to it then Sachsenhausen. Most of it was destroyed by the Nazis, so a lot of it was just memorials. However, this is still a must do.
The highlight of this trip though, was I got yelled at by a little old Polish woman for about 15 minutes. She informed in Polish I was going to the ’grypa’ (flu) and die, if I did not put my jacket on. She then pointed at Lizzie who had a jacket on and told me to dress like her. But my pants were ok, haha, since they covered my legs. We told her that we did not speak Polish. She nodded, and turned around. Then she turned back to us and continued to yell at me.
It was so strange to be in Poland. I got so used to speaking English and broken German. In Poznan some people did speak a little German. In Warsaw though no one did, so it was a bit harder to get around.
I was having trouble posting pictures here, so I made a flickr!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/127821656@N04/
Tschüss!
In Poland we went to Poznan and Warsaw. Poznan was smaller, but so beautiful and packed full of spaghetti bars. (Plus we stayed at the Ibis!) We did a lot of tours around churches, since Poznan was the birthplace of Polish history and Catholicism. In the surrounding areas of Poznan we visited quite a few open air museums. We had our afternoons and nights free so those were spent wandering the city centers. We were also lucky enough to be there on a Saturday at noon. Any day at noon in Poznan they do the running of the goats. However, on SATURDAYS they also have the lancers out. The lancers kind of look like the Polish Mounties. On the way to leave Poznan, we got really lost. We also were supposed to get there by ourselves, so this did not help. Luckily a nice Polish man came over and helped us. Then my suitcase broke, so another nice Polish guy helped me carry it up the stairs.
In Warsaw we stayed at the HIT Hotel. It was nice, but the ladies at the front desk were rude! In Warsaw we did a lot of tours. Then we went to Treblinka. It was pretty quiet, and had a different feel to it then Sachsenhausen. Most of it was destroyed by the Nazis, so a lot of it was just memorials. However, this is still a must do.
The highlight of this trip though, was I got yelled at by a little old Polish woman for about 15 minutes. She informed in Polish I was going to the ’grypa’ (flu) and die, if I did not put my jacket on. She then pointed at Lizzie who had a jacket on and told me to dress like her. But my pants were ok, haha, since they covered my legs. We told her that we did not speak Polish. She nodded, and turned around. Then she turned back to us and continued to yell at me.
It was so strange to be in Poland. I got so used to speaking English and broken German. In Poznan some people did speak a little German. In Warsaw though no one did, so it was a bit harder to get around.
I was having trouble posting pictures here, so I made a flickr!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/127821656@N04/
Tschüss!
Sunday, September 14, 2014
In Berlin!
I got into Frankfurt at 5.55am on Saturday, August 23rd. From there I took an hour ride on an airbus to Tegel. I was stuck there for a while, until 1pm. Globalinks did a mass pickup, then took us to Hotel 103. Hotel 103 was pretty nice, although the male receptionist was a total jerk. We did plenty of city tours, and then on Tuesday we went to the FU-Berlin campus in Lankwitz. They enrolled us, and took our pictures for our Visas. Then they had taxis to take us to our apartments. Our apartments are pretty nice, mine luckily overlooks the backyard. I have a view of the train that comes past every few minutes, and graffiti of a jelly fish and a sign that says "The bums will always lose." That week FU-Best took us on even more tours to get us used to the city. This was helpful as I got lost in Friedrichstraße, and ended up in some weird area that started with an M. I honestly have no idea where that was. I ended up taking a taxi home. Lukcily, the guy was an older gentleman who spoke English. A few days after we had a welcome reception at the Botanical Gardens, in one of the green houses.
So I have been here for a while now. I'm enrolled in classes which I love. I had to take a German placement interview and I placed in A2 Intensive (It is all in German-No English). Over here the levels are experimental, experimental intensive, A1, A2,B1,B2,B3, Advanced 1, and Advanced 2. Half way through the semester we move up a level. So in late October I will be in B1. So come winter semester, when I take the placement again I should be in B2. Then have way through THAT semester should be B3.
I live in the Steglitz area which is a really quiet area, and my apartment is around the corner from our S-Bahn stop. I go two stops on that, and three stops on a bus and I'm at school which is really great.
So far I've been on a bunch of tours, the DDR Museum, Checkpoint Charlie (awesome by the way), the "death section" of the wall, The underground bunker tour at Alexanderplatz, The Nikolai area, Alexanderplatz, The Brandenburg Gate, Memorials, Kreuzberg, a boat tour of the Spree river, and the Memorial for the Roma victims of the Holocaust. Anyone who comes to Berlin should go there. A few days ago Lizzie and I went to the Olympic Stadium. This is where the Hertha BSC plays. I got tickets to their upcoming game October 12th against Hamburg. This is also the stadium where the 1936 Olympic games were held. The Nazi buildings are still standing. Their pool is now used as a public swimming place. It is quite popular.
I was also supposed to go to Potsdam on Friday, but I ended up misreading the directions so I missed it. Instead I decided to go back to Kreuzberg and hit up the Turkish Market. However, I could not find it and so went back home. Kreuzberg is really beautiful though, so it is not as if the day was wasted. I love all the food options. There is a huge Turkish population, so there is no shortage on Döner!
On Saturday I went to the zoo with Lizzie. It's pretty impressive to think in the middle of Berlin there is a zoo. We didn't go into the aquarium but the zoo kept us occupied. The most amusing thing was watching the penguins. I never knew they were such bullies. Afterwards we went back into Kreuzberg for some Döner.
Today we went to the Mauerpark Flea Market. It is held every Sunday, and is the biggest Flea Market in the city. Everything is so cheap, and the food is amazing. I got Börek with meat. It was pretty good, lots of bread though. I had to resist the urge to buy some things, but I am making a point to stop there again. There was a ton of "Hipsters" there though. This seems to be the place where the most interesting people seem to shop.
So this week I have a class excursion to Berliner Straße I believe. I also plan on finding that 4 floor Humana with Lizzie.
I should probably stop blogging now, as I have two pages of German for class tomorrow. Next post should include pictures. I also apologize for any misspellings. I have a German laptop, and I'm not used to the keyboard setting.
Tschüß!
So I have been here for a while now. I'm enrolled in classes which I love. I had to take a German placement interview and I placed in A2 Intensive (It is all in German-No English). Over here the levels are experimental, experimental intensive, A1, A2,B1,B2,B3, Advanced 1, and Advanced 2. Half way through the semester we move up a level. So in late October I will be in B1. So come winter semester, when I take the placement again I should be in B2. Then have way through THAT semester should be B3.
I live in the Steglitz area which is a really quiet area, and my apartment is around the corner from our S-Bahn stop. I go two stops on that, and three stops on a bus and I'm at school which is really great.
So far I've been on a bunch of tours, the DDR Museum, Checkpoint Charlie (awesome by the way), the "death section" of the wall, The underground bunker tour at Alexanderplatz, The Nikolai area, Alexanderplatz, The Brandenburg Gate, Memorials, Kreuzberg, a boat tour of the Spree river, and the Memorial for the Roma victims of the Holocaust. Anyone who comes to Berlin should go there. A few days ago Lizzie and I went to the Olympic Stadium. This is where the Hertha BSC plays. I got tickets to their upcoming game October 12th against Hamburg. This is also the stadium where the 1936 Olympic games were held. The Nazi buildings are still standing. Their pool is now used as a public swimming place. It is quite popular.
I was also supposed to go to Potsdam on Friday, but I ended up misreading the directions so I missed it. Instead I decided to go back to Kreuzberg and hit up the Turkish Market. However, I could not find it and so went back home. Kreuzberg is really beautiful though, so it is not as if the day was wasted. I love all the food options. There is a huge Turkish population, so there is no shortage on Döner!
On Saturday I went to the zoo with Lizzie. It's pretty impressive to think in the middle of Berlin there is a zoo. We didn't go into the aquarium but the zoo kept us occupied. The most amusing thing was watching the penguins. I never knew they were such bullies. Afterwards we went back into Kreuzberg for some Döner.
Today we went to the Mauerpark Flea Market. It is held every Sunday, and is the biggest Flea Market in the city. Everything is so cheap, and the food is amazing. I got Börek with meat. It was pretty good, lots of bread though. I had to resist the urge to buy some things, but I am making a point to stop there again. There was a ton of "Hipsters" there though. This seems to be the place where the most interesting people seem to shop.
So this week I have a class excursion to Berliner Straße I believe. I also plan on finding that 4 floor Humana with Lizzie.
I should probably stop blogging now, as I have two pages of German for class tomorrow. Next post should include pictures. I also apologize for any misspellings. I have a German laptop, and I'm not used to the keyboard setting.
Tschüß!
Monday, August 18, 2014
Slight Changes
Tag!
So there has been some changes in my program.(Which is why I deleted my first post)
1- New arrival date. I've been in contact with a few of the other Globalinks/ISA students and we all have one thing in common. No one has any idea when we are supposed to be in Berlin. A few of us has August 19th, some had August 20th and so on. I emailed my PM, and she said to use the date under my account. There were two dates under my account. I decided then to call STA which is where they suggested booking our flight through. My agent had no idea when we were to leave. Globalinks had not given them this year's dates. They were still stuck on last years. So I finally got the dates straight through our Berlin contact. I leave this Friday at 4:40pm, and get into Berlin at 8:55am. From Saturday to Monday afternoon we will be doing an orientation with Globalinks/ISA. They booked us rooms at Hotel 103. Hotel 103 is a little hostel that is fairly near the city center of Berlin.
2- Two trips. From September 26th to October 3rd I will be in Poznan and Warsaw Poland. The other trips that were supposed to be in March were replaced. Instead of Austria/Switzerland, we now have the option of London or Paris/Strasbourg France. I'm not to sure which one I will sign up for. I've always loved England. On the other hand France is beautiful.
3- New PM. On Saturday we received an email saying we had a new PM. This one at least seems to be on top of things...
4- Apartment. Those staying in the apartments finally got our address. We're all staying in the same building which is nice. It's only a couple of minutes away from the S-Bahn and U-Bahn. The airport is around 20 minutes away. We get to move in Monday.
Till Friday or Saturday!
So there has been some changes in my program.(Which is why I deleted my first post)
1- New arrival date. I've been in contact with a few of the other Globalinks/ISA students and we all have one thing in common. No one has any idea when we are supposed to be in Berlin. A few of us has August 19th, some had August 20th and so on. I emailed my PM, and she said to use the date under my account. There were two dates under my account. I decided then to call STA which is where they suggested booking our flight through. My agent had no idea when we were to leave. Globalinks had not given them this year's dates. They were still stuck on last years. So I finally got the dates straight through our Berlin contact. I leave this Friday at 4:40pm, and get into Berlin at 8:55am. From Saturday to Monday afternoon we will be doing an orientation with Globalinks/ISA. They booked us rooms at Hotel 103. Hotel 103 is a little hostel that is fairly near the city center of Berlin.
2- Two trips. From September 26th to October 3rd I will be in Poznan and Warsaw Poland. The other trips that were supposed to be in March were replaced. Instead of Austria/Switzerland, we now have the option of London or Paris/Strasbourg France. I'm not to sure which one I will sign up for. I've always loved England. On the other hand France is beautiful.
3- New PM. On Saturday we received an email saying we had a new PM. This one at least seems to be on top of things...
4- Apartment. Those staying in the apartments finally got our address. We're all staying in the same building which is nice. It's only a couple of minutes away from the S-Bahn and U-Bahn. The airport is around 20 minutes away. We get to move in Monday.
Till Friday or Saturday!
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